Just~One~Donna

  15-Minute Meatball & Tortellini Soup (The Ultimate Freezer-Staple Dinner) When I need dinner on the table fast (and I mean really fast), this meatball and tortellini soup is what I make. If you keep frozen meatballs and refrigerated tortellini on hand, you’re about 15 minutes away from a hot, satisfying meal that feels homemade without a lot of effort. This is one of those dependable recipes I come back to again and again. It’s flexible, forgiving, and perfect for the days when cooking needs to be simple, but substantial.

There’s nothing quite like a steaming bowl of classic beef stew on a chilly evening. The rich, deep flavors, the tender chunks of beef, and the perfectly cooked vegetables come together in a way that warms both the body and soul.   Classic Oven-Braised Beef Stew This post contains affiliate links.  I receive compensation when you shop using these links. This Dutch oven beef stew is a tried-and-true recipe that will fill your kitchen with an irresistible aroma as it slow-braises in the oven. With simple, wholesome ingredients, this is the kind of dish that turns an ordinary evening into something special. Whether you're making it for a family dinner or meal prepping for the week, this stew will not disappoint!  

When the weather turns cooler, this easy Italian Sausage and Kale Soup is one of the first soups I make.  It's hearty, flavorful, and simple enough for a weeknight dinner. Made with Italian sausage, potatoes, kale, fire-roasted tomatoes, and chicken broth, this is a lighter, broth-based soup with all the savory flavor you want on a chilly evening.  If you love the flavors of Zuppa Toscana but don't want a heavy, cream-based soup, you'll want to add this one to your fall dinner rotation. Easy Italian Sausage and Kale Soup  This post contains affiliate links for your shopping convenience.   Serve Up Spicy Italian Sausage Soup This soup is a flavorful and hearty Italian-inspired dish that combines the rich flavors of sweet and hot Italian sausages with fresh vegetables like red pepper, celery, onion, potatoes, and kale. ...

Nothing beats a pot of homemade soup when you're craving something warm, hearty, and comforting. This Classic Minestrone Soup is one of my family's favorites, and it's easy enough to make on a weeknight. This Italian vegetable and pasta soup is packed with vegetables, beans, tomatoes, and pasta, then finished with Parmesan and fresh parsley. You can make the whole pot on the stovetop in about 30 minutes, making it a practical choice when you want a satisfying homemade meal without much fuss. Classic Minestrone Soup This post contains affiliate links.  When you shop using these links, we receive a small compensation. Minestrone soup is hearty enough to stand on its own with some crusty bread, or when paired with a sandwich or panini of your choice.  

Winter soup season is upon us and one of my favorite soups is this version of Italian Wedding Soup, made with cheese tortellini and frozen Italian meatballs.  It can be made with absolutely minimal effort by choosing prepared ingredients from the grocery store.   Assemble the ingredients, and in approximately 40 minutes you will have a hearty, delicious soup.   This is the number one requested soup in my family, so I am confident your family will love it as well. 15-Minute Meatball & Tortellini Soup | The Ultimate "Freezer Staple" Dinner When I'm in a hurry to make this soup I make it completely with store-bought prepared ingredients including frozen meatballs. It is quick and delicious. You'll love how easy this soup is to make.

Do you want to know how to make a tasty soup? You CAN make a delicious soup once you understand the basics.  Making vegetable soup is a great way to perfect your soup skills. This recipe shows you just how simple soup can be.  Easy Vegetable Soup Three Keys to Making the Best Vegetable Soup There are three keys to making a delicious vegetable soup. 1. Use fresh, flavorful ingredients 2. Taste as you go 3. Focus on the broth When you are making a vegetable soup the veggies are the star .  That means you want to use delicious tasting vegetables.  A combination of multiple kinds of vegetables will give you a breadth of natural flavors that infuse the broth and meld together nicely. This recipe uses frozen mixed vegetables for a quick and easy soup. Your favorite fresh vegetables will work, too. You also don't want to overcook your soup .  A flavorful soup does not need to cook for hours on your stove.  This is ac...

I'm a soup lover and during the winter months, I make soup about once a week.  This red lentil soup recipe has been in the rotation this winter and this year I've been loving it with the addition of sausage.  Winter is the perfect time for hearty, warming soups, and this red lentil and sausage soup is no exception. Lentils are a fantastic source of fiber and protein, and when combined with spicy Italian sausage, they create a delicious, comforting dish that will satisfy your cravings and warm you up on even the coldest of days. Hearty Red Lentil and Sausage Soup This post contains affiliate links. When you shop using these links we receive a small compensation. Hearty Red Lentil and Sausage Soup This red lentil and sausage soup is a delicious and nutritious meal that is perfect for the cold winter months. It's easy to make, and the addition of spicy Italian sausage adds a depth of flavor that will satisfy even the pickiest eaters. So grab a bowl, and a slice ...

Do you love butternut squash soup? Butternut squash soup is usually the first soup I make as the weather turns chilly here in New England. I love it.  I love the color of butternut squash soup.  It screams fall to me.  I love the texture of butternut squash soup because it is perfect for dipping a slice of warm crusty bread.  Most of all, I love that this soup is easy to make. Today's recipe makes a butternut squash soup with a little heat.  The heat comes from the addition of jalapeno peppers as one of the vegetables in the soup.  I use two jalapeno peppers when I make this soup.  Use only one if you want just a hint of heat.  Yes, you can leave the jalapeno peppers out of the soup altogether and still have a yummy soup. Butternut Squash Soup with Jalapeno Peppers This post includes affiliate links.  When you shop using these links we receive a small compensation. Butternut Squash Soup This butternut squash soup is one of the...

This month I'm focusing on healthy foods and today's recipe for Spinach and Kale Soup fits perfectly.  I don't like to throw food out.  It just seems wasteful.  So, when I looked in my refrigerator last weekend and saw some kale and spinach that were calling out to be used, I decided to make a soup.  Have I told you I love soup? A Flavorful Spinach and Kale Vegetable Soup This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.  I am compensated when you shop using these links.   Spinach and Kale Soup  Winter can be challenging when shopping the produce department for fresh vegetables.  Spinach and kale always seem to be in abundant supply in winter and look fresh and appetizing.  This is compared to the other vegetables I prefer like green beans, zucchini, and asparagus.

Sometimes you just need chicken noodle soup. Here in the Northeast, we've had weeks and weeks of bitterly cold weather.  A blizzard this week left us with piles of snow and frigid temperatures with wind chills below zero.   On top of that, we've had coughs and sniffles that just won't quit.  It's miserable.  That means it is a perfect time for hearty soups like this homemade chicken noodle soup. Hearty Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup Hearty Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup The best chicken noodle soup is made with just a few ingredients.   The base flavor comes from carrots, onion, celery, and chicken stock.  You'll want to be sure you are using the best, most flavorful ingredients you can find to make this hearty homemade chicken soup from scratch.

If you enjoy corn chowder and a little spicy heat, you will love this kicked up chicken corn chowder recipe.  The addition of some cooked chicken turns this soup into a main dish that is perfect for a casual weekend or weeknight dinner. A Yummy, Spicy Corn Chowder with Chicken This post contains affiliate links.  If you make a purchase through these links I will receive a small compensation that supports this blog. Kicked Up Chicken Corn Chowder This is a perfect recipe for rotisserie chicken.  If you are like me, you have a rotisserie chicken in your fridge right now.

Hubby was telling me about a yummy tomato soup he had recently. When I replied by saying how much I loved tomato soup, he just laughed because he knew I loved  every kind of soup.  So, I must be more specific when I talk about the soups I like.  For example, when I think about all the soups I like with beef as the base flavor, this beef barley soup is my favorite. Slow Cooker Beef Barley Soup  Beef  Barley Soup I always make this soup when I have some leftover roast beef in my refrigerator.  Soup is a great choice when you are scratching your head about what to do with perfectly good leftovers. A little bit of this and a bunch of that, combined with a tasty broth, will make a satisfying and filling dinner for your family. This beef barley soup was made in my six-quart slow cooker, but it can just as easily be made in a pot on your stove. Just adjust your cooking times to the method you choose. One of the benefits of the slow cooker me...

It has been a while since I have shared a soup recipe with you.  If you are a regular reader, you know that soup is a favorite on the dinner menu in the Just One Donna house.  We really enjoy a bowl of steaming, hot soup and a slice of crusty bread when the winter temperatures drop and the wind is howling outside.  This Chorizo Sausage and Kale Soup is comfort food at its best.  It is flavorful and filling.  As an added benefit, your bowl will be chock full of good-for-you vegetables. Chorizo Sausage and Kale Soup-Perfect for Winter Chorizo Sausage and Kale Soup I made this yummy soup with the odds and ends of vegetables I had in my refrigerator and freezer, and I hope you will do the same.  As I was making the soup, I couldn't help thinking about the story, Stone Soup .  It was a favorite of mine when I was a kid.  The stars of this soup are the kale and the chorizo sausage, but feel free to add whatever vegetables your famil...

Butternut squash soup is one of my favorite fall and winter soups.  It actually may be my favorite soup of all, but sometimes I think my favorite soup is whatever I am eating that day.   Over the years I've made multiple versions of butternut squash soup.  The one I favor often depends on the ingredients I have on hand, the weather, or how much effort I am wanting to expend.   Today I'm sharing my three favorite versions of butternut squash soup.  The first is quick and easy, the second is spicy, and the third is decadent. Butternut Squash Soup Three Ways #1 Easy Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Soup Some of my recipes for butternut squash soup take a little time to make but there are those days when I am just too busy for my usual butternut squash soup preparation.   This recipe for Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Soup is perfect for those days when you are in a hurry and crave butternut squash soup! Easy Roasted Butternut Squash an...

This corn chowder is a perfect kick-off to soup season. As the seasons shift and the weather turns cooler, there's one dish that always manages to bring warmth and comfort to the table – a steaming bowl of creamy corn chowder. It amuses me that as soon as I flip the calendar from August to September each year my cravings for soup begin.  This year is no different from any other because soup has been on my brain since the first of September.   How to Make Corn Chowder in Your Slow Cooker (I include affiliate links to products for your shopping convenience.  Purchases you make through these links help to support this blog.  Thank You) What if I told you there's a way to elevate this beloved classic to a whole new level of corny goodness? Enter our Slow Cooker Corn Chowder recipe, where we take the essence of corn and infuse it into every spoonful by cooking it with the cobs for hours on end.

Seafood Gumbo The other day I had the urge to make a seafood soup.  My son had been asking for a seafood soup for several weeks and at last I felt like making one.  I didn't want to make a traditional New England seafood chowder because I was in the mood for a soup with some kicked up flavor.   I did some Internet surfing and settled on a seafood gumbo as my target soup. I bet you are a lot like me.  You get an idea in your head about something you want to eat and then look for recipes that you think will deliver.  In this case, I just wanted a flavorful seafood soup.  To me, that meant I wanted lots of herbs and spices.  A gumbo delivers on this combination; the amounts and mix of spices are those that I thought my family would like.  If you decide to make this soup, I encourage you to adjust the seasonings based on what you know your family likes, as well.  That means you should feel free to add a little more of this, while perha...